Undergraduate Research Program Awards 2013*

South Dakota State University

Undergraduate Research Program Application 2013
South Dakota State University Application Form
Student: __________________________________ Planned Graduation Date____________

Students Local Address:_________________________________________________________ Academic major/s, minor/s:_______________________________________________________ Mentor:_____________________________________ Dept.___________________________

Title of Proposed Investigation: ___________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________

Abstract of Proposal: (limit to 250 words)

Signature of Applicant __________________________________________________________________

Signature of Mentor ____________________________________________________________________

Attached to this application form shall be: 1. A one-two page statement of the applicants educational goals and explanation of the role of the mentorship in allowing the applicant to achieve them, including a discussion of the impact of the proposed research. 2. A 2-3 page original proposal will be prepared. revised 01/2013

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3.

Applicant transcripts and a description of extra-curricular activities.

In addition, a letter of support from the students mentor will be submitted to Sandra.newman@sdstate.edu. Signing this application indicates that the applicant and mentor agree to abide by all rules and conditions of the mentorship program. Convert the entire application (all 3 parts) to a single PDF or word file entitled Your first initial, last name, undergraduate research 2013.pdf Send the file electronically to Sandra.newman@sdstate.edu and put Undegraduate Research Program Application in the subject line.

All application materials must be received by Sandra.newman@sdstate.edu by March 22, 2013.

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Undergraduate Research Program South Dakota State University Mentor Support Letter
Student Name: ___________________________________ Mentor Name/Department/Signature: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____ I am willing support the work of this student. Note: This will include time to serve as a mentor, and may also include provision of facilities, equipment and travel as needed for project execution. ____ Please rank your students application on a scale of 0-5

0
Unacceptable applicant/proposal. I do not support this project.

1
Poor applicant/proposal. Student is not the primary director of this project, significant input and supervision will be required in order for student to carry out project.

2
Fair applicant/propsal. Student is not the primary director of this project, student required significant input from the mentor, and it is questionable whether the student is capable of fully understanding the project.

3
Good applicant/proposal. Student is not the primary director of this project; student required significant input from mentor. However student is capable of fully understanding and carrying out the work proposed.

4
Very good applicatnt/proposal. Student was the primary director of this project; mentor input included editing of proposal and some explanation of project possibilities.

5
Outstanding applicant/proposal. Student was the primary director of this project; mentor input was minimal.

Please include any further comments below includin g your impression of the students abilities academically, activities that make the student uniquely qualified for this mentorship, student character, and the impact this mentorship would have on the students goals.

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Undergraduate Research Proposal Evaluation 2013 Student Name: _____________________________________ Date of Review: Eliminate if either of the following: Support letter does NOT indicate support of the student: ______ Support letter does NOT indicate the student primarily wrote the proposal: _____ Number of credits completed as of December, 2012: ______ Honors College progression standards met (if applicable):________ Field/s of study: ________________________________________________________________

One page statement of goals and mentorship experience 15 points The statement is well written. The statement clearly reflects the students goals and the value of the mentorship experience Proposal - 50 points The proposal is original/written by the student and is well written (10 points, 0 if evidence of content taken directly from mentor materials) The abstract is clearly written. (5 points) The hypothesis is clearly and logically stated. (5 points) The rationale and approaches to test the hypothesis meet the stated goal. (10 points) The research design is clearly stated. (10 points) If experiments are involved, the quality and quantity of the experiments are appropriate. appropriate controls and statistical methods are described. proposed outcomes of the experiments are appropriate. If no experiments are involved, Research plan is appropriate and original in the field of the students major The student clearly presents the importance of research problem being addressed. (5 points) The importance of the research to the students career path is described. (5 points) Points are awarded based on student presentation of the student goals, value of the experience, and impact, not on the reviewers perception of the importance of the research. Students Transcripts and Extracurricular Activities 15 points The students grade point average indicates academic excellence. Extracurricular activities indicate leadership and achievement. Previous research experience indicates student initiative. Mentors Support Letter 20 points The support letter indicates student excellence (in character; academics; extracurricular activities). Points are assigned (0-20) based on ranking of qualities of student described in mentor support letter. Character /5 pts, extracurricular activities /5 pts, academic and potential research ability /10 pts TOTAL

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